Matthew C. Winter, JD

Matt Winter graduated from the University of California, San Diego in 1994 and attended California Western School of Law. He graduated from law school in 1997 and began his legal career at Federal Defenders of San Diego. There, he specialized in complex litigation and trial, conducting over thirty-five jury trials in Federal District Court and arguing numerous cases before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. In 2005, he and his family moved to Hawaii and he joined the Federal Public Defender Office in Honolulu. There, he continued his trial practice in Federal District Court until joining our firm in 2011.

Mr. Winter has devoted his career to assisting those in need. At Davis Levin Livingston, he has focused on cases involving personal injury, medical malpractice, and insurance bad faith. In addition, Mr. Winter handles civil rights cases on behalf of the American Civil Liberties Union of Hawaii – specializing in cases involving free speech and the right to peacefully protest. In 2015, he was honored by Governor David Y. Ige and the Hawaii Supreme Court with an award for his outstanding pro bono service to the people of Hawaii. Daniel Gluck, Legal Director of the ACLU of Hawaii, stated: “When Matt agrees to take on a case, he commits to it fully and completely. He does the hard work to move cases forward.”

Mr. Winter is admitted to practice law in the states of California and Hawaii, the Federal District Court of Hawaii, the Federal District Court for the Southern District of California, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, and the United States Supreme Court. In 2007, Mr. Winter was appointed to be a Lawyer Delegate to the Hawaii District Court Committee. He is a current member of the ACLU of Hawaii’s Litigation Committee and a past board member of the Hawaii Federal Bar Association. During his career, Mr. Winter has taught trial skills to numerous attorneys and has served on the faculty for the Hawaii State Bar Association’s Trial Skills Academy.

Professional Honors and Associations

Governor and Hawaii Representative to the National Board of Governors for the American Association of Justice (AAJ) (2017- )